Multi-target modulation of glycation-driven skin aging by bioactive compounds of medicinal plants: A narrative review

Skin aging is a complex biological process driven by the interplay of intrinsic genetic factors and extrinsic environmental stressors. Among the underlying mechanisms, non-enzymatic glycation and the progressive accumulation of advanced glycation end products are widely acknowledged as central contributors to skin aging. Upon binding to their primary receptor, receptor for advanced glycation end products, advanced glycation end products activate multiple critical signaling pathways—including mitogen-activated protein kinase, nuclear factor-kappa B, protein kinase C, and Wnt/β-catenin—triggering oxidative stress, chronic inflammation, degradation of the extracellular matrix, and cellular senescence. These molecular events collectively lead to hallmark phenotypic features of aged skin, such as wrinkle formation, loss of elasticity, and uneven pigmentation. In recent years, medicinal plants have demonstrated considerable promise in targeting glycation-related pathways, leveraging their inherent advantages of multi-component composition, multi-target engagement, and systemic regulation. This review outlines the fundamental process of non-enzymatic glycation and its pathological implications in skin aging, with a focused analysis of the advanced glycation end products and their receptors mediated signaling network. Furthermore, it integrates current evidence on how representative medicinal plants, including Astragalus membranaceus , Panax ginseng , Angelica sinensis , Platycodon grandiflorum , Leonurus japonicus , and Psoralea corylifolia , and their bioactive constituents exert anti-skin aging effects through the modulation of these pathways. Accumulating studies indicate that medicinal plants can achieve synergistic anti-aging outcomes via diverse mechanisms, such as suppressing early glycation reactions, disrupting the interactions of advanced glycation end products and their receptors, attenuating oxidative stress and inflammatory cascades, enhancing collagen biosynthesis, and restoring stem cell functionality. With advancements in three-dimensional skin models, organoid systems, network pharmacology, artificial intelligence-assisted drug discovery, and novel delivery platforms such as nanocarriers and hydrogels, medicinal plant-based anti-aging research is transitioning toward greater precision, integration, and modernization. Future efforts should prioritize multi-omics data integration, the establishment of standardized evaluation frameworks, and in-depth investigations of emerging mechanisms such as the “gut microbiota–skin axis.” Such endeavors will accelerate the innovative translation of medicinal plants into clinically viable interventions, offering safe, effective, and natural strategies to support healthy aging.